What Have I Gotten Myself Into?
by SavedByGrace82514
Summary: Captain Jonathan Spaulding and His Marine company have been assigned to Pandora. Once they get there though, some wish they had stayed on Earth.


What have I gotten myself into? Chapter 1  
Captain Jonathan spaulding was one of the Marine's greatest assets. He was known to every one, from private to General. He spent years as his company's point man, refusing to give the job to another man because he thought the risk of being killed should be his. Through being point man, he earned many medals and awards. Promotion after promotion came to him. He denied every one of them on the basis of the fact that he liked the action and the adrenaline rush of combat. He was the perfect model of a soldier, until that fateful day.  
Stationed not far from modern day Qatar, Jonathan was in charge of a small peacekeeping force. They did light patrols through the villages not thinking there would ever be any action. But were they wrong.  
On a warm December night, Jonathan had decided to go for a walk with some of his men to stretch their legs. No one even thought to bring their weapons since it had been peaceful for such an extended period of time. And therein layed their mistake.  
Hiding in the shadows of a chain of buildings, insurgents were lying in wait. As Jonathan and his men passed by, the insurgents struck like lightning. They opened up with thirty caliber sub machine guns. Everyone was struck by the bullets. Some died instantly. Others died slowly, watching their life bleed out while they were helpless to stop it.  
Jonathan was hit twice, once in the stomach and once in the chest. Luckily the bullet that had slammed into his chest hit a rib and lodged there. He stood there, swaying in pain and clutching his stomach, looking at the insurgents. The leader of the insurgents, known as The Black Hand, stepped forward.  
" So you are the great captain Jonathan Spaulding," he said, his voice thick with a middle eastern accent. " Not so high and mighty now, are you?"  
" Who are you?" Jonathan said in a voice laden with pain. " What do you want?"  
" I was General Achmed Pike, commander of the Jordanian army," the man said, strolling over to stand toe to toe with Jonathan. " I'm sure you remember me?"  
" You bastard," Jonathan spat out. " You're the one who committed mass murder of the entire Avatar program here on earth. You murdered everyone, even the ones who pleaded for mercy. Like my wife and son."  
" Ah," Pike said laughing. " You do remember me. All the better."  
" Remember?" Jonathan said bitterly. " I was going to kill you after I caught you but I stopped myself. I wanted justice to be dealt. Now I wish I had killed you when I had the chance."  
Jonathan swayed and dropped down to one knee. He was losing more and more blood and strength as the seconds flew by.  
" Life's full of regrets isn't it?" Pike asked mockingly as he circled his prey. " The Avatar program is a bad joke. Who would ever want to be blue and nine and a half feet tall? I did the world a favor."  
" Your death would be the biggest favor the world needs right now." Jonathan said slowly.  
Pike drew a pistol and cocked it. He then pointed it at his prey's chest, centering it over his heart.  
" Get ready to meet your wife and child," Pike snarled.  
Jonathan was determined not to look away. He would not give Pike the satisfaction. Pike's finger slowly tightened on the trigger, depressing it further and further. The entire time Jonathan stared right into Pike's eyes.  
Just then a shot rang out. Pike's eyes read absolute terror and pain. Jonathan looked down at himself, expecting to find yet another hole ripped through him. He found no such hole.  
Looking up, he say a bullet wound on Pike's chest, over his right lung. Pike's hand was covering the wound and he was backing away slowly. He had dropped his gun and held his free hand in the air. Another shot rang out, hitting his outstretched hand. Pike cried out in pain, tucking the hand to his chest as he turned and ran back into the shadows from whence he had come.  
Jonathan looked around, trying to find the person who had saved him. He could see no one.  
" Looks like I got here in the nick of time, eh Captain?" a voice said from behind him.  
Jonathan slowly turned around. Standing a few feet away from him was the company's sniper, Corporal Daniel Tucker. Tucker had always been adept at sneaking around when he wanted to. This was such an occasion.  
" It's lucky for you that I happened to be out on the roof of HQ practicing my archery," Tucker said. " Ever since you made that order that we have to practice for two hours every day, I've been getting better and better at it. Anyway, I had my gun sitting there with me. I heard the sub machine guns and knew something was up. I snatched up my rifle and picked up your trail. I followed it until I found you kneeling with wounds and Pike standing over you, ready to shoot you. I shot only to injure him then scare the hell out of him. And I think I succeeded."  
" Indeed you did Dan," Jonathan replied laughing through his pain. " Thank you. I'd be dead right now without you."  
" No prob, Captain," Dan said waving his hand as if it were nothing to save a man's life. " We need to get you back to base to have those injuries looked at."  
" C'mon," He said grabbing under Jonathan's armpit to help support most of his weight. " Let's go. One foot at a time."  
It took considerable time for Daniel and Jonathan to reach base due to the fact that Jonathan could only walk five hundred feet before he had to rest.  
" Cap'n," Dan said after a while. " Why do you have us practicing archery when we have guns that are perfectly fine?"  
" The reason for that is, let's say you're in the woods on Pandora, for instance, and you lose your gun." Jonathan said. " What are you goin' to use? For that matter, what are you going to do?"  
" First of all," Dan replied, " Why would I be on Pandora in the first place?"  
" Theoretically. Work with me here."  
" Okay. Well first off I would find myself some form of a weapon. I would probably use my knife and make a spear. After that I would set up a perimeter then try to find out where I am."  
" That's good. Very good. You forgot one thing though."  
" What's that?" Dan asked.  
" The Na'vi," Jonathan said matter-of-factually. " Even though Jake Sully and his crew remained behind, the Na'vi are still not very receptive towards Humans and Avatars."  
" Why are you even talking about this, Jonathan?" Dan asked. "Why are you telling me all this?"  
" Because," Jonathan replied, " You're one of the closest friends I have. You've saved my ass so many times I've lost count."  
" You know those wounds aren't very serious, right?" Dan said.  
" I know," Jonathan said slowly through a haze of pain that had just begun to assault him. " I was just preparing you for what I'm going to tell you next."  
" What are you going to tell me now?" Dan asked casually.  
" We've been assigned to the ISV Quadrant as security forces," Jonathan said. " We are being reassigned to Eden's Gate."  
" What?" Dan yelled. " This is serious, right? You're not pulling my leg or anything are you?"  
" No," Jonathan said seriously. " This is real. I just received the orders today. We ship out in three weeks. And Dan, we are not goin' to be human security forces. They are going to give us Avatars. Understand why I have everyone on base learning how to shoot with a bow? Now keep this under your hat. I don't want anyone else knowing. Don't make me make that an order."  
" You can trust me," Dan said. " I'll keep it quiet."  
Dan could feel how much strength his captain had lost as they walked on. Jonathan was relying more and more on Dan. By the time their base came into view, Jonathan was almost unconscious.  
" Stretcher! Stretcher and medical team on the double!" Dan yelled as soon as he reached the gates.  
Within seconds, a medical team had run out of the base and put the captain onto a stretcher. Jonathan reached up from the stretcher and grabbed Dan's hand. He gave it a squeeze then they began wheeling him towards the hospital.  
Dan watched as they wheeled him away. He could not believe how Jonathan could have gotten into that situation. The captain always had a knack for getting into trouble then not knowing how to get back out again. And that's where Dan stepped in. He had always gotten his friend out of the worst sorts of trouble. Now he didn't know if his friend, the best one he ever had, would make it through surgery. Dan had told Jonathan that his wounds were not serious but they were life threatening. And when they could not move very fast, that only worsened his friends condition.  
Jonathan was in surgery for more than eight hours. He had severe internal trauma and he had lost a lot of blood. After he was transferred to a room, Dan stuck by his side the entire time, leaving only for duty and to eat.  
Two weeks later, Jonathan was cleared for duty. He returned to his office, much to the delight of his fellow officers. All of them, he would have trusted his life with and all of them would have trusted their lives with him.  
Two days after returning to his job he called a staff meeting. He was going to tell them all about their reassignment.  
One by one his officers filed in: Major Frank Lenox, who was over him in the chain of command but looked to him for guidance; Captain Joshua Epstein, a Jewish man in his early fifties; Corporal Georgia Gregorich, the only woman in his personal ' cabinet'; and, of course, Corporal Daniel Tucker, a man in his late thirties. Once everyone was assembled, Jonathan began speaking.  
" Thank you all for coming," he began. " It's so nice to be back to work again after laying flat on my ass for so long."  
Everyone started chuckling at that remark, Jonathan included. While he was recovering, many had joked that he had planned the whole thing just to get out of work. Those that said that though really didn't mean it.  
" Anyway," he continued, " The reason I called you all here today was to tell you that we are being transferred."  
" Really?" Lenox said sarcastically. " We're gettin out of this hellhole?"  
" Hellhole?" Georgia said incredulous. " I happen to really like this place."  
" Of course you would," Lenox replied.  
" What's that supposed to mean?" Georgia yelled.  
" Children," Joshua said. " Let's listen to the Captain to find out where exactly we are being transferred to. You were saying Captain?"  
" Thank you Captain," Jonathan replied. " You all know of the planet Pandora, right?"  
Everyone shook their heads yes. Dan shook his head no then drifted off to sleep as Jonathan continued talking.  
" Then all of you know," he continued. " How important this planet is to earth. And I know all of you know about Jake Sully. We have been reassigned to the new scientific research base, Eden's Gate, as security forces. The best part is that we are not going to be using our human bodies. Everyone on base will have an Avatar. See why I had everyone practicing Archery and survival skills? Now we ship out in five days to Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral Florida. They'll get our blood samples and begin growing our Avatars. After that we board the ISV Quadrant. Six years later we arrive on Pandora. Any questions?"  
" Yeah," Dan asked. " I got one. Are we done yet?"  
" I oughta slap you," Jonathan said, making a backhanded slap with his hand that passed inches from Dan's face.  
Dan recoiled instantly before his commanders outstretched flying hand.  
" That'll teach him," Georgia said through a bout of laughter.  
" Yeah," Joshua said joining in, his deep jovial laughter adding to the din.  
Major Lenox just sat back in his chair and smiled. After everyone quieted down, he spoke.  
" Well," he said smiling, " We can tell who the man and who the woman is in that relationship."  
Everyone, including Jonathan and Dan burst into laughter that lasted for about ten minutes. After everyone quieted down for a second time, Jonathan began speaking again.  
" You all know what we have to do and the time in which we have to do it," he said. " Let's get to it. Company, dismissed."  
One by one they filed out of the room to go start their assigned duties. Major Lenox was in charge of packing all the administrative offices and making the orders known to everyone on base. Captain Epstein was on charge of packing the kitchen and all the supplies that went with it. Corporal Gregorich was in charge of packing all their medical supplies. And Corporal Tucker was in charge of all the computers and other technological equipment. Last but not least, Captain Spaulding was in charge of weapons. He had decided to take two M60 machine guns and the rest of their weapons be bow and arrow, clubs, long knives, staffs, and spears.  
Five days had come and gone relatively quickly. The whole unit, the 481st Rangers had packed everything of value on base into two Chinook cargo choppers.  
Preparations had been made in advance for the Departure of all the personnel to Kennedy Space Center. Two military 747 Boeing planes set down on the small airstrip that their base possessed. As everyone filed on board, Jonathan stepped back and took it all in. This base and the people had been his life for many years. To see it all packed up and leaving for a distant world was almost too much for him. He knew there was nothing left on Earth for him but he felt a connection to it. Major Lenox walked up behind Jonathan and stood there staring with him.  
" Jonathan," he said. " I won't be going with you. At least not yet. And maybe never but I don't know yet."  
Jonathan wheeled around to look Frank in the eye. He couldn't believe what he had just heard. Frank had always been his right hand man and had always supported him no matter what. Now, who, besides Dan, would support him?  
" Why?" He asked shakily. " Why aren't you coming with us?"  
" Jonathan," Frank replied. " I'm old. I'm fifty six years old. I don't need to be running around the jungle with a gun. My prime was twenty years ago."  
He sighed loudly before continuing. " After I took three bullets in my chest, I started to realize what mattered a d what didn't. This matters a lot to me. You know that but I can't undergo the cryogenic freezing. My heart isn't strong enough. It all boils down to this: I don't want to be sixty two by the time we reach Pandora. I would never be able to come back to Earth, my home world."  
" But look around you," Jonathan said, interrupting him. " This planet is dying. Dying. There is nothing we can do to stop that. We created this, this deathtrap. It's only a matter of time."  
Jonathan paused for a minute then continued. " I watched one of Jake Sully's video logs. He said that the Na'vi have an all powerful great Mother. Her name is Eywa. She protects her people and her planet. I started thinking about that. We used to have an all powerful and Great Mother. But we drove her away. We refused her when she was reaching out to us. She left us and went to Pandora. She turned it into what it is today for her enjoyment. And we almost killed her."  
" I know this planet is dying," Frank replied. " I've known that for a while. But this whole bit about Eywa is interesting. You are saying that Eywa lived on and in Earth and we drove her away? How?"  
" We made technological advances that hurt the Earth in more and more ways," Jonathan replied. " We discovered more and more ways to effectively kill each other. The list goes on and on. But yes we did drive her away."  
" I've always felt a kind of pulling deep down in my, I guess, my very being for something better," Frank said. " I guess it is Eywa calling to me. Maybe I will be going with you after all. What the hell! I'll go with you. Might as well die on some damn fool adventure than die of poisoning. You had better make sure I get an Avatar or I swear I'll kick your ass."  
" As I said before," Jonathan replied laughing. " Everyone is getting an Avatar. So don't worry. You'll get one."  
" Good," Frank replied. " I don't want to waste six years of my life for nothing."  
" Are you packed?" Jonathan asked.  
" Jonathan," Frank said with a smile. " I've been packed ever since you told us about our reassignment."  
" Good, Good," Jonathan said absentmindedly. He gazed off in the distance, taking a look at the world he called home for one of the last times. He looked at the cargo planes and noticed Dan walking towards them.  
" Here comes Dan," He said. " Probably coming to tell us it's time to go."  
" Most likely," Frank agreed. " Let's meet him halfway."  
Both men began walking down the hill they had been standing on. As they walked, the chinooks lifted off of the ground leaving just three people on the base: Jonathan, Frank, and Dan. The thunder of the chopper blades faded into silence as they continued to walk reminiscing about all the expires they had in the base.  
Dan approached them and fell in step beside them.  
" Time to go fellas," he said.  
" Really Sherlock?" Jonathan asked smiling. " I thought the laundry was just being taken out."  
" I kept a Samson for us to fly out, just like the old days," Frank said. " Otherwise we would not be getting out here. And with just the three of us with only handguns and the Black Hand snooping around, let's get out of here fast."  
" I couldn't agree more," Dan said, looking nervously behind his shoulder, ready to shoot at shadows.  
They all climbed into the Samson and started the long trek to their final destination, the lush, young, pristine world of Pandora. 


End file.
